1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to material working tools and, more particularly, to a vacuum sander for abrasively removing material from a surface and collecting the removed residue.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In such fields as carpentry, masonry and drywall construction, it is often necessary to produce a smooth surface by sanding material from the surface. Often the surface to be sanded is not readily accessible to a workman without the use of ladders or scaffolding. Attempts have been made to solve this problem by mounting the sander at the end of a long handle through a universal joint. One such sanding device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,711,059 issued to Ames. Since the removed residue is generally of a powder-like consistency, it is desirable to collect the residue without allowing it to disburse over a wide area. Although vacuum collecting devices have been previously employed for this purpose, they have not functioned satisfactory under all conditions and they are often too large and heavy to mount at the end of an elongated support member. In the field of drywall construction, for example, the abutting edges of plasterboard sheets are generally covered with paper tape and coated with a layer of plaster. The plaster is then sanded until a sufficient quantity of plaster is removed so that the plaster is flush with the faces of the sheets. Since drywall construction is generally at the later end of a construction project, it is important to collect plaster dust removed by the sander so that the dust does not interfere with subsequent construction stages such as painting or wallpapering.